Steering column with a safety element for a motor vehicle equipped with an inflatable air bag in the steering wheel
US5346255A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 2, 1993 |
| Grant date | Sep 13, 1994 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 2, 2013 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB60R2021/2173
- WIPO fieldTransport
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
The present invention pertains to a steering column for a motor vehicle equipped with an inflatable air bag in the steering wheel (6), in which the parts (3, 4) of a steering shaft, which are connected to one another by a universal joint (5), are rotatably mounted in a housing consisting of a movable upper housing part (1) and a lower housing part (2) rigidly attached to the body, and the two parts of the housing are connected by a hinge (7) to a hinge axis (9) that extends approximately horizontally in the plane of the intersection of the axes of the universal joint, and can be interlocked with one another by the frictional engagement of a clamping device (13). In this steering column, the hinge (7) of the two housing parts (1, 2) is arranged at a spaced location from and above the central longitudinal axis (8) of the steering column, and the two housing parts (1, 2) can be interlocked with one another only in a position in which the axes of the steering shaft parts (3, 4) connected to one another by the universal joint (5) form an angle that is open toward the hinge (7), and the frictional engagement can be overcome by the recoil forces of the ignition of the air bag during the i…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.